Tropical Storm Andrea

A relatively weak tropical storm is pushing into Florida.  Right now it's calm, but we had some heavy rain and wind this afternoon.  We can expect a lot of rain and gusty winds, but nothing too severe according to weather forecasters.  A plus is that the temperatures have lowered into the low seventies.

Florida 2013

Greetings from the Sunshine State!  

Unfortunately, stormy weather has moved into Clermont, FL (suburban Orlando) as you can see in this picture of Eduardo and Christine's backyard. We've had plenty of sunshine and heat over the past couple of weeks, though.  We are house and pet sitting for a couple of our friends.  They are in Europe on their honeymoon.

Here are the babies we are taking care of.  

The cat, Oliver, is a charming purr machine.  He gets along surprisingly well with the dog, Basil, a precocious dachshund/beagle mix.  Their favorite activity is to go out in the backyard together after nightfall to hunt lizards and roaches.  (No fear that they will overhunt the backyard; it teams with both prey animals.)

In the foreground is the house in which we are actually staying, viewed from the back.  We spend a good deal of time sitting in the lanai area, especially in the morning and evening when temps are most moderate.  In the background, you can see a neighbor's house, which gives you an idea of what the front of this house looks like.  

Scott and I spent the first part of our state interviewing for jobs in Gainesville and Pensacola.  While the leads were promising, we didn't get the jobs.  We are weighing our options, and I'm continuing to look for work.  Interviews aside, the trip has been be really refreshing.  Here are some picture:

On our way down, our hotel happened to be in Stone Mountain, Georgia.  This unusual, baron stone hill sticks out peculiarly over the surrounding land, and you can remarkably see downtown Atlanta from the top.

It was quite a longish hike to the summit, although not too steep.

We kept our tourism confined to walking on the nature trails.  Other attractions in the area are a Confederate memorial carving on the other side of the mountain and some sort of odd amusement park.  An unsavory part of the local history is that the Klan "revival" started there in the early twentieth century.  Fortunately, the black community seems to be getting the last laugh; the area has become an affluent African-American suburb of Atlanta.

After getting down to Florida, we had a bit of time of time to settle in and visit with the newlyweds, Christine and Eduardo.  A highlight of our first few days in town was eating at a Spanish restaurant in Orlando.  I'm a huge fan of Spanish cuisine, particularly paella, and I got to practice my underutilized Spanish with Eduardo.  I'm sure they're having a blast in Italy and Greece.

Also, in our first few days, we visited Disney.  We had a good time, but honestly, go to Universal if you make it to Orlando.  My favorite area of Disney was the world tour (I'm forgetting its exact name) at Epcot.  Scott, who has a streak of Peter Pan in him, loves the Tower of Terror.  We both enjoyed the Safari at the Animal Kingdom, although I swear the ostrich was getting ready to peck me In the head.

Getting fatter.

The park is full of hedges shaped like cartoon characters.

Tea Garden.

English cottage.

Safari.

Everest.

Hard to see, but live gibbons climbing around a Jungle Book type ruins.

Back at the house, we've been relaxing, caring for the pets and lawn, reading, watching movies, and getting some sun.

We also went to Cape Canaveral which is a short drive from Orlando.

Yep, that is the robot from Lost in Space!

There are great bike trails that run near Christine and Eduardo's, too.  We use them all the time for runs and walks.  They pass through orange groves, pastures with cows and horses under palm trees, and lush tropical vegetation.   I'll need to bring a camera on a walk before we go to get more of the landscape.  Here's some animals we've come across on the trails.

I have a few more pictures to put up, but I'll add them later.  Before I go, I want thank Christine and Eduardo for thinking of us to come down here.  We are glad to be able to help out our friends, and at the same time, get paid to go on a Florida vacation.  Not often you get that chance!

Easter in Arkansas 2012

We had a great time visiting Don, Hope, and the kids for Easter! Scott and I spent Friday night and Saturday in Monticello, leaving Sunday morning.  Don and Hope were good hosts as always.  Some highlights of the visit were a good catfish dinner on Friday, alligator viewing at Arkansas Post, an excellent home-cooked Easter meal, and a backyard bonfire.  

It was very fun to see the kids who get so much bigger every time that we see them.  Kenny is quite tall!  He's a board game enthusiast.  He beat me in Stratego, and I taught him how to win in three moves in chess.  The weather was pleasant so Kenny, Scott, and I played basketball out back.  I like that I can dunk on their hoop!  Beth is quite a bright kid.  I noticed how voraciously she was reading through her new nature book that she got at Arkansas Post.  At our Saturday night bonfire, she sat on my lap most of the time.  What friendly kids!  Little Stephen, too.  He was happy to include Scott in his green plastic soldier army game.

Here are some pictures:

There are indeed alligators in these waters.  Look at Don's blog for up close pictures.

Arkansas Post Shenanigans

Bon appetit!

Nap

We happened to stop at a Tuscaloosa McDonald's on the trip and found this.

See you in June, Bragg Family South!

Happy Ppeppero Day!

Do you think that the United States is the only country with contrived holidays that are all about commercialism?  You'd be wrong.  Korea does too.  Ppeppero Day is like Korean Valentine's Day.  It is celebrated on November 11 each year.  Couples exchange boxes of Ppepperos, long battons of pretzel filled with chocolates.  Here's more about that holiday: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepero

Also, here are some adorable Jindo puppies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRUBDTDeMAs&feature=related   Jindos are Korea's national dog.

City Living: Street Cats, Tiny Trucks, and Korean Carrots

Steet kitties.  Meow!  There are a lot of street cats in our neighborhood.  Garbage is plentiful in the streets and on the sidewalks here, so the cats eat a lot of leftover food.  When garbage does end up in bags, kitties often tear them open or spread around the contents.  One day, Scott and I found a terrified kitty on the inside steps of our buildings.  We managed to eventually shew it out of the bottom door.

Binge drinking is not only a Western problem!  Scott and I have encountered many red-faced students and grown men on the streets and in the subway.  Certain hard liquors are ridiculously cheap here which doesn't help, I'm sure.

Rooftop gardening

Don't be fooled.  This truck may look cute and innocent, but it will run you down and the driver will imagine that it was all your fault.  It's very dangerous for pedestrians here.  Being a pedestrian here is one of the most unappealing parts of being in Korea.

High-speed train travel is one of the best parts of being in Korea.  I particularly like that people are very quiet on the train.

It might be hard to make out, but that that is a big moving railroad track layer.

Super fat Korean carrots.

Scott's toupee.   Hehehehe!

I guess that the library was clearing out old books.  There was a huge pile of books out in the street one day next the library.  They used some kind of crane-type vehicle to bring the books down from the upper floors.

Finally, I got it in the mail.  Well, earlier this fall.

Daejeon has its moments: Skyline, Puppy, and An Unfortunately Named Lasik Center

A Daejeon neighborhood viewed from a hiking trail in the mountains

The mountains have a nice pine forest cover

Fall weather is pleasant and, unlike summer, dry

outdoor workout center, piled rocks

solar-powered light on trail

a lot of the city is flat, but this one is quite steep.  it's near a mountain.  note the excessive, ugly power lines everywhere

green fencing marks the start of the forest park area on the mountain where the trail is located

Many translations here are remarkably poor.  This lasik eye surgery center is called "Came Seeing."  A better translation might be "Left Seeing."  :)

There are a lot of broad avenues in addition to narrow crowded neighborhood streets.  These broad avenues do often have bike lanes in the middle of the sidewalk.  Beware speeding motorcycles and grouchy hunched over women with carts on the sidewalks

Seed husk or hedgehog?

Scott and I often eat a little restaurant/coffee house called "Pumpkin."  We love their chicken curry sandwich and the sweet potato latte which may sound gross but it's actually quite tasty.  The owners are really likable.  This puppy belongs to one of the owners.  It has the softest fur.

Scott LOVES this puppy

I once saw this puppy almost run over by a careless driver.

Nice parking job!